What Slytherins Calls Love
by corawhite
Summary: I suck at summaries. This story is unfinished. Draco falls in what he would call love with a girl from Ravenclaw. She likes him back, but isn't sure if he just wants her for something else. T for mild swearing and suggestive themes. R&R, please.
1. Taste of Blood

"Hey, Squib!"

Cora turned to see who had called to her, "What did you say?"

"That's what you are, aren't you? A worthless Squib?"

Malfoy. She should've known. No one else even had the heart to call her that to her face. His smirk could've broken a mirror. She crossed her arms defiantly.

Cora was in Ravenclaw because of her intelligence. Not that she didn't have any other qualities that would fit into other houses, but Ravenclaw was the closest to her match. She didn't look as smart as she was. Her wavy blonde hair fell just passed her shoulders, bouncing slightly has she walked. Her gray eyes showed more emotion than any other part of her face. When she was mad they were a piercing silver. When she was happy they were more of a dark steel, and so on. Her body was at least two years more mature than her age. She often got unwanted attention because of it, but loved the fact that she at least looked good. Her friends were not all from Ravenclaw. She had some friends in Gryffindor and a couple acquaintances in Hufflepuff. Her good points were that she was friendly, kind, fun, and very spontaneous. The bad sides? She usually acted before thinking things out and then regretted it later.

"And how is that even different from a Pure-blood, besides the fact that your parents are wizards? Unless, of course, you didn't think that far because you're too busy trying to come up with lame insults that have no hilarity to them?" Cora smiled as her friends chuckled. Of course, what she said wasn't funny…it was the fact that Draco Malfoy had no idea what the hell that meant.

"It's not exactly impressive to stand up to me, you know. The others all got beaten half to death," He sneered. His posse laughed evilly.

"Ironically, it's not exactly impressive to beat someone half to death either!" One of Cora's friends said from behind her.

Malfoy turned back to his group of followers and snickered, "Watch the master."  
He turned back and pulled out his wand. The group of girls behind Cora gasped quietly as she pulled her wand out as well.

"I seem to recall your charms aren't as perfected as you say they are. Do you think it's wise to get into a duel with a Ravenclaw?" Cora took a step forward, twirling her wand between her fingers.

"Don't you think it'd be wise to lose a few pounds?" Draco muttered. Cora's mouth dropped and she looked down at herself. She wasn't fat at all, and no one had ever said anything like that. At one point she even made herself gain weight, because she felt she was too thin. 

"You lie!" Her voice was more intense now that it was personal. At the start she just wanted to protect the name of Squibs…but now this was mainly about her.

Before she could raise her wand, Malfoy said something that couldn't be heard over the insults people from both groups were shouting each other. Cora suddenly felt something cold wrapped around her waist. Someone screamed. She looked down and freaked out. A black snake with white eyes was slithering around her body. Snakes were Cora's worst fear. 

Draco laughed as she struggled to get the creature off without picking it up. After a few minutes, one of her friends pulled it off and threw it into the grass. It hissed and slithered in the opposite direction. Cora was furious now. Her gray eyes were cold and piercing.

"What's wrong?" Draco put a pouty face on sarcastically. With one flick of her wand and no words spoken, Draco was standing in his boxers (which, by the way, were lime green and silky)

"How does that feel?" Cora sarcastically pouted back and lowered her wand. Draco pulled up his pants and held his robes closed in case she tried it again.

"You aren't just a Squib…you're a bitch!" He dropped his wand and ran at her, driving his fist onto her right eye. Both groups backed off and watched intently. Cora put a hand to her eye. It was sore. No blood, though.

"Real mature, dumbass," She glared. There were a couple seconds of silence before she rolled her eyes, "Oh, screw it," she told herself before running at him. Her fist flew at his nose. He pulled his head back just enough so that no injuries occurred, just a bloody nose.

"Give it up!" Draco jumped at the girl and started pounding her face with his fist. She struggled and pushed him to the side, giving her a chance to throw some punches in. The group of Ravenclaw girls watched, stunned that Cora would get into a fight, while the Slytherin group cheered Draco on.

Neither one had a chance to punch the other for quite some time. They were to occupied with trying to gain control of the other person. They were equally strong, and about the same size. Cora threw some kicks in at one time, but unfortunately didn't hit the spot she was hoping for.

After minutes of useless rolling around, Draco came out on top. He threw punches like mad. One straight to her teeth. There was a small cracking sound in her mouth. She felt blood, and lots of it. That was it, she needed revenge.

More wrestling for punches began. And at one point, some Slytherins left because of the length of the fight. Draco strained his muscles to come out on top. He pushed her onto the ground harshly. Cora grunted as her head hit a rock. A bit of blood trickled down her chin.

For a brief moment, the sun hit Draco's hair like he was some sort of God. The instant was gone when Cora felt lips on hers and a tongue shoved into her mouth. It didn't seem possible, but it was true. It was Draco's tongue. It was a kiss. The sound around her was muffled and warped as she kissed him back. Cora closed her eyes and put a hand on his arm.

Reality. She snapped back into what was actually happening after what she hoped was only a couple seconds. Pushing him away, her eyes widened. When she looked around, everyone else's eyes were wide as well. 

Draco spat a load of blood out of his mouth and raised his eyebrows, "I hate the taste of blood."

Cora smacked him across the face and kneeled beside him. She took his hands and spat a mouthful blood on his palms, then rubbed them together.

"My blood is on your hands, jerk!" she stood and held her hands out, indicating to the crowds to let her by. They parted like the red sea. She walked quickly, she wanted to get out of there. Tears were on the verge of streaming down her face and she had no idea why. She had no idea why he'd kissed her and why she'd actually enjoyed it. She spit a tooth out into her hand and studied it as she made her way to Madam Pomfrey.

Draco looked at his hands in disgust and disappointment. He had lost a fight and a girl.


	2. Another Side of Malfoy

"I brought your homework!"

Cora looked to see who had entered the hospital wing. It was Hermione Granger, one of Cora's close friends.

"Hello, Hermione. How are things?" Cora asked, propping herself up with her elbows. Hermione pulled a stool next to Cora and put down the armful of books she had been carrying before sitting down.

"You've been missing tons in potions!" Hermione enthused. She started listing off potions they had made and what they did. Once she decided Cora could read the chapters in her books herself if she wanted to know more, Hermione asked, "How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, really. Sprained wrist, lost tooth, mild swelling on the face," Cora smiled, "I don't get why I have to stay the night here. I understand having to repair the tooth, but it's not much…really."

"Madam Pomfrey just wants to make sure you're okay," Hermione explained, "You should have heard her talking to Professor Mcgonagall about Malfoy. What exactly happened, anyways?"

Cora repeated the whole event to Hermione, leaving out the part with the kiss. She wasn't sure if Hermione would be able to fully comprehend a sentence with 'Draco Malfoy' and 'kiss' together.

"So, it's no big deal…but thanks for bringing me my homework," Cora looked down at the large stack of books and papers. Half of her was glad, but the other half was disappointed that she would spend her evening in the hospital wing doing homework.

"I know what it's like to be in here, wondering what exciting things everybody's learning!" Hermione sighed.

"Hermione, have you ever been-" Cora started to speak, but was interrupted by a voice in the doorway.

"How's my favorite Squib?"

Hermione slid off the stool and stood her ground, "What are you doing in here, Malfoy?" she put a hand to her pocket just in case she needed to pull out her wand.

"Relax," Draco took a few steps towards the bed that Cora was lying on, "I'm just here to see if that bitch, there, is healing well."

"Oh?" Hermione cocked her head to one side curiously. It didn't seem like something Draco would normally do, even if he was plotting something. She felt a tug on her robes.

"Hermione!" Cora hissed quietly. She quickly whispered, "Don't worry, go!"

"I'll get Madam Pomfrey just in case!" Hermione whispered back. She then walked cautiously passed Draco, bumping him as she went by, indicating he wasn't so tough. After her footsteps disappeared down the hall, Draco took her place on the stool.

"What do you want?" Cora asked coldly. She laid her head back and avoided eye contact.

"How bad was it?" Draco asked almost kindly. Cora turned away and repeated the same thing she had told Hermione.

"How'd you get healed so fast?" Cora looked at Draco's face for the first time since he'd been in the room. His pale skin wasn't bruised, swollen, cut up or anything.

"Snape."

Cora turned away again, "Ah…"

Silence. Neither of them spoke for the next minute and a half. Cora was dying of awkwardness and fear. Draco was simply waiting for her to mention the kiss.

"Why are you interested in me?" Cora finally said out of curiosity. There was no flirtatious motivation behind it, really. Draco smirked.

"Honestly? I don't really know," He leaned over to Madam Pomfrey's counter and grabbed an apple out of a fruit bowl, tossing it in the air. After taking a bite he added, "Why are you interested in me?"

Cora nearly choked, "I am not interested in you."

"What about that kiss?"

"You kissed me!"

"But you kissed me back," he pointed out.

Cora scrunched up her face, "Hardly!" she sat up and looked him in the eye.

"I'm sorry, but it lasted five seconds at the least," Draco emphasized the word 'least' and took another bite out of the apple.

"You were forceful."

"Right, then. Suit yourself," without another word, he hopped off the stool and headed towards the doorway.

Cora was stunned and definitely confused. She had the urge to call him back, but instead simply said, "Where are you going?"

"You have no interest in me, so I have no point in being here," He smiled and turned the corner, disappearing from sight.

"Well…" she tried to think of an excuse to get him back. Nothing came to mind.

His head popped back around the corner just to say, "I'm sure we'll see each other around, bitch." and then he was, once again, gone.

Cora fell back onto her pillow. What was wrong with her? What did she find so attractive about Draco Malfoy. He was mean, repulsive, stupid, insulting, witty, charming, mysterious, sexy….

"No!" Cora corrected herself, "He's not…" even though she knew she was falling hard. Pulling the books onto the hospital bed one by one, she hoped getting a head start on homework might distract her from the questions racing through her mind.


	3. DM

Cora plopped down next to Darren Teal (Cora's best friend) the next morning in the great hall. She picked up a fork and started poking at a pile of pancakes that Darren had gotten her before the plate had been carried down the table. He gave her a sideways glance.  
"Not hungry?" he asked surprisingly.  
Darren was Cora's best friend. They didn't spend as much time together as they hoped, because people always asked if they were dating, which kind of freaked Cora out. He was tall with dark brown hair and piercing blue eyes. Cora envied him for his boldness. It seemed he was always going against the flow, not caring what people thought of him at all. She wondered why he wasn't the heartthrob of Hogwarts, because he was everything a girl would want. He was smart, funny, outgoing, and she couldn't help but admit he was pretty good looking.  
"Not really. Thanks for saving them for me though," she stopped poking at her food and pushed her plate towards him, "Do you want them?"  
"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day," Darren reminded her as he started eating her pancakes. She wondered how he stayed so skinny with how much he ate.  
Cora nodded and smiled, "I know, Darren."  
"So what exactly happened? Someone said you and Malfoy tangled tongues, but I didn't think it was true. I also heard you guys got in a fistfight. Didn't think that was true either. The one that sounded most realistic was that Malfoy kind of…attacked you." He blushed. Cora bit her lip and drummed her fingers on the table.  
"Well, I can assure you I wasn't…" she made little quotations with her fingers, "attacked. If you mean…sexually."  
"That's just what I heard," Darren scratched his neck uncomfortably. Cora laughed quietly.  
"I can't exactly say the first two aren't true," She admitted. He lowered his arm slowly and looked at her, stunned.  
"You fought Malfoy? No – You _kissed _Malfoy?" He almost shouted. People at the Ravenclaw table turned to look. Cora covered his mouth and put her finger to her lips.  
"I didn't exactly kiss him. He called me a Squib, we threw a few punches, and then he kissed me. I pushed him off and went to Madam Pomfrey. That's it!" She told him. He looked at her skeptically and shook his head in disbelief.

"But…you're not a Squib!" Darren said aimlessly. Cora shrugged her shoulders.

"Not anymore," Cora corrected him. There was a small pause in the conversation.  
"Why would Malfoy kiss you?" he wondered aloud. They both looked towards the Slytherin table. Draco was resting his head on Pansy's shoulder, her hand entangled in his hair. She kissed his forehead. Darren made a face in disgust and looked back at Cora, whose eyes were full of jealousy. Darren looked slightly disappointed and even more confused.  
Draco was listening to Pansy tell him how attractive he was. He glanced at Cora to see if she was watching. Once their eyes met he smirked as if to say 'look what you're missing'  
"Are you sure _he _kissed _you_?" Darren asked, but wasn't sure if she was paying attention. Her eyes had snapped from Draco to the floor.  
"Yes, Darren, I'm sure."  
"Well you don't seem too upset about it," He looked back at Draco. A few seconds later, owls soared into the room with packages and letters. The newest issue of The Daily Prophet dropped in front of Darren. He picked up the paper grumpily and started reading.  
Almost all the owls had gone when Cora's owl Willbur dropped onto the table, a square envelope tied to its foot. She untied the note, kissed Willbur on the head, and let him leave. Darren watched her open the envelope out of the corner of his eye. The note inside was written in green ink. He could guess who it was from.  
Cora looked at the signature at the bottom before reading the note. It was from 'D.M.', which was no surprise at all. She shoved the note into her robes and crumbled up the envelope.  
"It's from one of my muggle friends." She lied.  
Darren narrowed his eyes, "What's going on between you and him?"  
"Nothing!" Cora crossed her arms defiantly. Darren scowled. She rose from the table and said goodbye to Darren, then made her out of the Great Hall. She felt two pairs of eyes fallow her as she left, and both of their names started with D.  
Instead of returning to the Ravenclaw common room, she found a deserted corridor filled with paintings of Tri-Wizard champions. She slid down next to a large colorful oil painting of a blonde-haired girl with a lean, dancer-like figure who was wearing a scarlet cloak. She ignored the paintings as they watched her intently, too anxious to read what her note said. Pulling it out of her robe, Cora unfolded the piece of parchment and took a deep breath before reading.

Cora,

Room of Requirements

1 hour past lights out

Don't bring any of those idiots you always hang out with.

Don't tell anyone.  
And bring a book in case I'm late.

D.M.

A sudden rush of fear and giddiness rushed through Cora's veins as she mouthed the words to herself. The painting behind her was reading over Cora's shoulder, laughing hysterically. Folding the note back up, Cora pushed herself onto her feet and bid the paintings a good day before walking – no, running to the Ravenclaw common room.


	4. You Win

"Cora, let me see the note!" Darren demanded the moment Cora walked through the portrait hole. Cora looked at him as though she had no idea what he was talking about. Several Ravenclaws were playing Wizards chess, reading, giggling in a corner, or catching up on homework.

"I thought you were going to stay at breakfast a bit longer," Cora said blandly. Without even looking at him, she started up the staircase to the girls dorm and didn't stop until she was out of sight.  
"Look, I'm not trying to be a nuisance!" he called after her, "I just don't want him to hurt you…he's not the kind of person who just spontaneously falls in love…he wants something else."

About thirty minutes after lights were to be out, Cora snuck out of her bed and into the girls' bathroom, changing from her nightgown into jeans and a turquoise tank top. She brushed her hair, her teeth, and didn't bother grabbing her robes. No one would catch her, therefore, no reason to fallow the dress code.

Just before creeping down the stairs, Cora had the oddest sensation that someone was awake in the girls dorm. There was nothing she could do, of course, so she kept walking, hoping whoever it was wouldn't make a fuss.

The school corridors were extremely cold at night. She hadn't taken the liberty in bringing shoes or slippers, which wouldn't have been a bad idea, now that her feet were almost going numb on the marble floors. Shivers were constantly running down her arms and her back, making her hair stand up straight.  
After many twists and turns, she found the door that led to what she hoped was the Room of Requirements. Cora wasn't sure how many people knew about this place. Dumbledore had once told her they tried to keep it as unknown as they could, because some students in the past had become obsessed with wants and needs by visiting the room. Cora had only gone there a couple times before, and it was mainly for private lessons with teachers who needed more of a secluded environment for what they were teaching. Reaching out to grab the doorknob, she untucked her hair from behind her ear and put a smile on her face, thinking about what she needed to be behind the door.

Inside, to her surprise, was not what she would expect. She'd been wondering all evening how the room would manifest. But, thankful that it wasn't Draco half naked on a large heart-shaped bed with satin blankets and a disco ball, she stepped into a cozy lounge. A warm fire had heated the room well, and the log cabin walls gave a friendly feel. A long rectangular coffee table sat by a lime green couch. The floor was wood, except for a multi-color oval shaped rug. There was only one problem…no Draco.  
A panic came to Cora as she sat down. What if she hadn't hoped for the right thing? Is Draco in some other room waiting for her? Disturbing thoughts of him half naked on a heart shaped bed with satin blankets and a disco ball flooded back into her mind. She made a face and started to slump onto the arm of the couch. When Cora finally located a clock in the room, she discovered it was five minutes after the time she was supposed to be there.

_Maybe I have dreamed up the wrong room!_She thought, and stood up almost instantly. As her stood up, her shins hit the coffee table, which tumbled onto it's side. At the same exact moment, the door slowly opened. Draco backed into the room, smirking as usual. He turned around and jumped.

"Holy…" he faded out, putting a hand to his chest and giving a nervous scratch. He was still in his robes, but they were extremely tattered, as if he'd just made his way through a cornfield in the pitch black. He was, also, out of breath as he spoke, "Didn't think you'd be here."

"I made a special effort to get out the portrait hole," Cora smiled sheepishly, pulling the coffee table back onto its legs.

"And why would that be?" He bit his lip and pulled off his robes. His style wasn't much different, however, seeing as how he was wearing a black t-shirt and dark muddy green jeans.

"Uh," Cora opened her mouth, thinking quick for a quick cover up, "My roommates were snoring." Draco laughed out loud, which soon made Cora laugh at her own words. Stepping closer and draping his robes on the couch, he took a glance around the room, but his gaze fell back onto Cora.

"So what made you think of this room?" he said, trying to hide his disgust. "I was hoping more for a discoball or something –"

Cora spoke before he could continue, not wanting another image of that room she had thought up, "I was cold."

"You'll be complaining about the heat later," he stepped into her and planted a kiss on her lips, which fumbled to open and kiss him back. The kiss wasn't quite as amazing as the day they had got in a fight, but it still made her muscles tense up excitement. He pushed her just slightly back onto the couch and sat beside her.

"Okay you win!" Cora muffled a sentence between the kisses. After minutes of caressing and lips, they ended up stretched on the couch, Malfoy half way on top of Cora."Squib," Draco muttered breathlessly, his smirk more vibrant than ever. Pushing him back, Cora sat up slightly, propping herself up on her elbow.

"I'm not a Squib!" She stated sharply. His smirk died and his eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

"Then…why is this your first year at Hogwarts…even though you're in your fifth year?" he wondered aloud.

"I don't know why, but when I was eleven, my mum spent forever telling me about how excited she was about my Hogwarts letter coming. All day she was checking her watch and making sure windows were open wide, but nothing ever came. I remember how upset she looked, sitting at the kitchen table drinking tea, looking out the window. 'It must be late' she would say, even days after. A week later my mum sent a handwritten letter to Dumbledore and we received one saying I hadn't developed any magic yet. He also said it was nothing to worry about because it's happened before, but my dad was convinced that I was going to inherit the non-magical side of the genes. The next year made me even more doubtful because I still didn't receive a letter, and I didn't get one for three years after that either. But one year, when we'd finally given up, I unexpectedly received my letter. A special note was included that I was to go to Hogwarts early and take private lessons from Dumbledore to get caught up.

"I guess it turned out to be a good thing after all," Cora shrugged, "because now Dumbledore and I are really close.

"Wish I could say that," Draco frowned, "Well, kinda." He added. After a couple moments of silence, he began to smother her with kisses. Cora took her weight off her elbow and lay back down. Malfoy pulled on her lip with his teeth (which Cora thought was really weird) and began to kiss her neck, almost more intent than when he was kissing her mouth. Cora's intense breathing pattern became slower as his ice-cold hand slipped under her shirt and up the side of her stomach. The little voice that wanted her to stop him was overruled by her throbbing heart, which pounded loudly in her ears. He pulled away from her neck as her tugged on her bra strap. A couple awkward seconds went by, the only sounds being their breaths and the flickers of the fireplace. More awkward seconds.

"Come on," he tugged once more, "let's get sweaty."

"I don't know, Draco, I just don't –"  
"You do know. You want me. You want to feel my skin against yours. All that's holding you back is your good girl instinct. But this is the real world…you can't be a good girl. You have to be able to shed your skin and let em in." he tugged on her strap.

"But we've only –"

"What do you _want_ to do?" he questioned. She sat up an inch and hesitantly reached to the back of her shirt, trying to get a hold of the clasp on her bra. Draco's eyes lit up and a smirk reappeared on his face. Sitting up, he began to pull off his own shirt. Cora fiddled with the clasp of her bra for a couple seconds. She wasn't having any trouble, but something was stopping her from doing what Draco wanted.

As Dracos black shirt hit the ground, she couldn't help noticing he had really nice abs, but what distracted her was the loud banging sound of the door being thrown open. Standing in the doorway with a shocked and disgusted look on his face was Darren.

Draco peered around the corner and scowled, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"I think I should be asking you the same thing!" Darren's muscles tensed up. Draco rolled his eyes and looked back at Cora.

"I said no friends," Draco said blandly. Cora bit her lip and pulled her hand up from behind her back. Darren strode forward with fury.

"What is wrong with you?" He pointed at her straight in the face.

"Darren, please, I'm not a kid!" She protested.

Draco smirked, "No shit she's not," he stated boldly, whipping his hair out of his eyes. Darren's face grew red.

"Don't touch her, you dog!" He threatened. Draco feigned fear. Cora didn't laugh, but Darren seemed to look at her as if she had.

"Darren, I'll be fine!" Cora assured, "Just go back and wait for me in the common room. I'll be back in a few minutes."

"He has his shirt off!"

"You heard the lady, back off!" Draco stood up and pushed Darren towards the door. Darren gritted his teeth and pushed Draco back.

"You only want her to do…things with!"

"Guys, stop!" Jumping from her spot, Cora tried to stand between them, but was thrown back onto the couch as the two boys started at each other.

"WHAT ARE YOU KIDS DOING!?"

All three froze and turned to see that they had left the door wide open. There was Filch and his cat, looking angrier than they'd ever seen them

"AFTER LIGHTS OUT, NO ROBES, ONE YOUNG MAN WITH NO SHIRT, FIGHTING, AND THE ROOM IS PROHIBITED TO ALL STUDENTS!" he bellowed.

"Filch, I can – " Darren began to say, but was cut off.

"I WOULD EXPECT MORE FROM YOU AND MISS WHITE OVER THERE. THIS IS UNEXCEPTABLE. DETENTION FOR ALL OF YOU! AND THAT'S THE LEAST OF YOUR PUNISHMENT!"

Cora glared at both Darren and Draco, who were both sulking in anger of not finishing their fight. The silence was ended by a obnoxious _meooowww._


	5. The In Between

The fire crackled fiercly, reminding Cora of the room of requirements. She sat gazing into the flames, a small glass half full of sparkling cider, which was a Ravenclaw favorite. They often smuggled bottles back to the common room for later use. Her glass contained the very last of it, but she really didn't care. Everybody else had gone down to dinner, which left her alone to think, to retrospect.

It was only a couple hours ago when she'd experienced the worst detention ever - or, at least, she assumed. This was the first detention she'd ever had.

Fortunately, the only staff member who was available for the next few weeks was Professor Flitwick, who absolutely adored Cora, like most teachers (with the exception of Snape)

_Cora had been dreading detention all day. Not only had it been awkward between her and Darren, but she was trying to avoid Draco as well. Luckily, Draco was late. Darren, on the other hand, was there before Cora. He was sitting in the chair closest to Professor Flitwicks desk, a sullen look on this face. Trying to make the least noise possible, Cora entered the room and sat down in the spot next to Darren. He shifted his position, but pretended to not acknowledge she was there._

_"I just don't understand how you two could get detention!" Professor Flitwick squeaked from behind a stack of books._

_"Let's just say we were in the wrong place and the wrong time," Cora smiled. Darren rolled his eyes. Professor Flitwick poked his head out from behind his books and beamed back at her. Darren's irritation was visible in his burning eyes, which stayed fixed at the window ahead of him._

_"I understand. I've been here long enough to know that happens often." Professor Flitwick said before returned to his work._

Finishing off her cider, she lay the glass next to her and curled her knees up onto the blue armchair. Understanding what was going on was only hard, but understanding what to do was even more difficult. After what had happened, Cora wasn't sure whether she wanted to speak to Darren or Draco again. And why was Darren so intent on keeping Cora away from Draco? Of course he was...well, a creep, but if he was really a good friend, wouldn't he respect her choices?

_"Where's Malfoy?" Darren finally said after a couple minutes. A wave of heat hit Cora's face. She untucked the hair from behind her ear and let it fall in front of her face so Darren couldn't see her, in case her cheeks were red._

_Professor Flitwicks puzzled face peered out again, "I thought he was here. Well, I'll give him 5 more minutes to get here."_

_Five minutes passed. No Malfoy._

_Ten minutes passed. No Malfoy._

_Another five minutes passed, and in came Malfoy. "What took you so long?" Professor Flitwick glared. Draco shrugged, a smug look on his face. Darren turned away from the window and looked Draco up and down; noticing his tie was tied sloppily and there was one section of his hair that was messed up. The rest was perfectly styled, like it always was._

_"I had to talk to Professor Snape." He said, which was obviously a lie. Cora untucked the other side of her hair from behind her ear as Draco sat down next to her, hoping he wouldn't notice her. As she had expected, her attempt failed. Draco kicked her leg softly. Cora just ignored him. Shutting her eyes, she tried to concentrate on something else. He kicked again. Again. Once more. Giving up, she looked over at him. He licked his lips suggestively and smirked. Cora groaned and buried her face in her hands, wishing the day would end right there. He kicked again._

_"Quit it!" Cora snapped. Professor Flitwicks face appeared._

_"Something wrong?"_

_"Sorry, that was my fault," Draco lifted his hand and faked a sincere face. Professor Flitwick nodded in approval and disappeared._

What was it about him that was so...intriguing? Not at the moment, but whenever he was around. It was like she wanted to dislike him - scratch that, she wanted to _loath_ him, but something inside kept her wanting more. She hardly knew anything about him except from what she had experienced, and a lot of that wasn't pleasant. The common room was warm, like the room of requirements, and she began to wish there was no fire. It made her think of the intense heat between her and Draco on the couch, which wasn't exactly what she wanted to think about. She just wanted to get her mind off of everything!

_Flashbacks from the previous night began to creep into Cora's thoughts as she lay her head down on her desk. The warm fire, feeling Dracos fingers in her hair, his kisses, the tugging on her bra strap, the way she scrambled to stand when Darren came in..._

_"Ow!"_

_Cora snapped back to reality, feeling another kick. She looked over at Draco sharply. He pointed to her desk. Looking down, she saw a small scrap of paper with Dracos handwriting. Cora looked back, scowled and sat up before reading the note._

_Last night was fun.  
Wanna try again tonight?_

_Wishing she had brought her supplies with her so she could write back, Cora fiddled with the little piece of paper, trying not to remember that just a foot away was the person who was anticipating her answer. She turned to look at Darren, who immediately pretended he wasn't paying attention._

It was odd, Cora thought, that today she didn't have any vibe between her and Draco. She didn't care about him at all. And, at the same time, she was still extremely mad at Darren for interrupting the night before. It was like there were two sides to her. One wanted to be her old self, this goody-goody who was carefree and happy all the time. The other half wanted something new, exciting, and dangerous for her reputation. Her heart, however, was stuck in the middle, leaning one way or the other at different times.

_The rest of the detention carried on as awkwardly as it had. When Professor Flitwick dismissed them at last, it was quarter 'til dinner. Cora was the first person out of the room, fallowed by Darren and Draco, who both wanted to speak to her first._

_"Cora!" They both said together after they were in the hall._

_"I'm not in the mood," she called back to them without even turning her head. The two boys looked at each other angrily and sped up to be by her side._

_"Cora, we desperately need to talk!" Darren pleaded. Cora made no change in facial expression._

_"Cora, can we have a moment alone? Just to go over some things?" Draco put his hand on her shoulder. She shrugged his hand off._

_"Go over? Yeah right!" Darren laughed in disbelief, "Why can't you see that this guy's just a pimp?"_

_"Why can't you see that he's a nerd?" Draco spat back. Cora pushed both of them away. They stumbled backwards simultaneously._

_"I need some time to myself. I'll talk to you both later," she said over her shoulder as if everything was okay. Their mouths open to protest, but she spoke first, "Individually, of course." And then she turned a corner._

_Draco smirked in relief and looked over at Darren, who was still trying to figure out how to convince Cora to talk with him now, his mouth fumbling for words._

_"Looks like I've got a date," Draco sneered. Darren lunged at him, smashing Draco's head onto the concrete wall. Draco grunted and pushed Darren back._

_"Keep your hands off me, prick!" he threatened. Darren took a step back, but looked ready to strike at any second. Draco smoothed his robes and kept walking._

_"So you'll fight a girl, but you won't fight me?" Darren shouted. Draco simply raised his fist and flicked out his middle finger, then turned the corner after Cora. Sinking to the floor, Darren let out a frustrated sigh and kicked the wall. He looked down the hall and then down at his feet, trying to decide whether he should go after Cora, Draco, both, or just leave it as it was until he had some time to think._

Tracing the ridge of the glass with her finger, Cora let another tear escape. If the rest of her week was going to be this idiotic, she didn't see the point in hiding in the common room. Everyone was going to see how depressed she was sooner or later, and would then be trampled with remarks such as, "You can tell me anything!" or, "Please tell me what's bothering you, I won't tell anyone!"

In fact, on the way back to the Ravenclaw common room, Cora had run into Hermione, along with her friends Ron and Harry.

_"Oh, hi, Cora!" Hermione smiled, stopping abruptly. Cora stopped and smiled, muttering a small 'hi' back. Ron and Harry waved emotionlessly. They only knew each other from the few times Hermione had stopped to talk in the hallway._

_"Hi Corry!" Ron said._

_Hermione elbowed in the ribs and corrected him, "Cora."_

_"How are you all doing?" Cora questioned, hoping they wouldn't see through her act. All three shrugged._

_"Just going down to the great hall," Harry's green eyes wandered._

_"Is it time for dinner already?" Cora sighed. They all nodded. She put her hand to her forehead and leaned against the wall, remembering how hungry she was._

_"Are you okay?" Hermione stepped forward and put her hand on Cora's cheek, feeling for a fever._

_"Yeah, I'm fine…I'm just…" knowing they were Dracos worst enemies, she avoided telling them anything, but didn't want to lie, "well, can I hang out with you guys sometime?"_

_"Of course you can!" Hermione cried generously. Harry and Ron both stood awkwardly, not knowing how to respond. She put her hand on Cora's shoulder, "anytime." Cora felt tears in her eyes. She needed to get out, needing to be alone._

_"Thanks. But, I think I'm just going to go back to my common room right now…I'm not very hungry," she said, staggering away from them. They said their goodbyes and continued walking. Once they had disappeared, Cora began to run. As she ran, her mind began to race. Things people had said over the last couple days echoed in her thoughts. It seemed like it had been forever since the fight with Draco, but she remembered it like it had been five minutes ago. Everything played through her head like a movie, causing emotions to stir inside her. The anger that had built up inside her over the last few hours began to stream down her cheeks with her tears. She sobbed the password to her portrait and burst through the hole in the wall. Just as she had hoped, the common room was empty._

And there she was, sitting by her self wiping her tears onto the sleeves of her robe. The tears had died down know, but occasionally something terrible would replay in her mind and they would start to flood down her cheeks again.

"I hate it!" She cried to herself, crumpling up a random paper and throwing it into the fireplace. Her vision blurred as the paper became black and turned to ashes.

"Hate what, me?" came a voice behind her. Cora's eyes widened. She could sense a grin in the penetrating voice. _You're imagining it_, she told herself, _it wasn't real_. But the voice came again, "That's a lot of tears over one guy, you know."


End file.
